Context. The detection of oscillations with a mixed character in subgiants and red giants allows us to probe the physical conditions in their cores. <BR /> Aims: With these mixed modes, we aim at ... [more ▼]

Context. The detection of oscillations with a mixed character in subgiants and red giants allows us to probe the physical conditions in their cores. <BR /> Aims: With these mixed modes, we aim at determining seismic markers of stellar evolution. <BR /> Methods: Kepler asteroseismic data were selected to map various evolutionary stages and stellar masses. Seismic evolutionary tracks were then drawn with the combination of the frequency and period spacings. <BR /> Results: We measured the asymptotic period spacing for 1178 stars at various evolutionary stages. This allows us to monitor stellar evolution from the main sequence to the asymptotic giant branch and draw seismic evolutionary tracks. We present clear quantified asteroseismic definitions that characterize the change in the evolutionary stages, in particular the transition from the subgiant stage to the early red giant branch, and the end of the horizontal branch. <BR /> Conclusions: The seismic information is so precise that clear conclusions can be drawn independently of evolution models. The quantitative seismic information can now be used for stellar modeling, especially for studying the energy transport in the helium-burning core or for specifying the inner properties of stars entering the red or asymptotic giant branches. Modeling will also allow us to study stars that are identified to be in the helium-subflash stage, high-mass stars either arriving or quitting the secondary clump, or stars that could be in the blue-loop stage. Table 1 is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to <A href="http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr">http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr</A> (ftp://130.79.128.5) or via <A href="http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/572/L5">http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/572/L5</A> [less ▲]

Seismic global parameters of the stars listed in the paper. Each star is identified with its KIC number (Kepler Input Catalog). The asymptotic frequency and period spacing are derived from the fit of the ... [more ▼]

Seismic global parameters of the stars listed in the paper. Each star is identified with its KIC number (Kepler Input Catalog). The asymptotic frequency and period spacing are derived from the fit of the radial and dipole oscillation modes. The stellar mass is derived from the seismic scaling relations. The evolutionary status is derived according to the location of the star in the DPi1 - Dnu diagram (Fig. 1) (1 data file). [less ▲]

PLATO 2.0 has recently been selected for ESA’s M3 launch opportunity (2022/24). Providing accurate key planet parameters (radius, mass, density and age) in statistical numbers, it addresses fundamental questions such as: How do planetary systems form and evolve? Are there other systems with planets like ours, including potentially habitable planets? The PLATO 2.0 instrument consists of 34 small aperture telescopes (32 with 25 s readout cadence and 2 with 2.5 s candence) providing a wide field-of-view (2232 deg 2) and a large photometric magnitude range (4–16 mag). It focusses on bright (4–11 mag) stars in wide fields to detect and characterize planets down to Earth-size by photometric transits, whose masses can then be determined by ground-based radial-velocity follow-up measurements. Asteroseismology will be performed for these bright stars to obtain highly accurate stellar parameters, including masses and ages. The combination of bright targets and asteroseismology results in high accuracy for the bulk planet parameters: 2 %, 4–10 % and 10 % for planet radii, masses and ages, respectively. The planned baseline observing strategy includes two long pointings (2–3 years) to detect and bulk characterize planets reaching into the habitable zone (HZ) of solar-like stars and an additional step-and-stare phase to cover in total about 50 % of the sky. PLATO 2.0 will observe up to 1,000,000 stars and detect and characterize hundreds of small planets, and thousands of planets in the Neptune to gas giant regime out to the HZ. It will therefore provide the first large-scale catalogue of bulk characterized planets with accurate radii, masses, mean densities and ages. This catalogue will include terrestrial planets at intermediate orbital distances, where surface temperatures are moderate. Coverage of this parameter range with statistical numbers of bulk characterized planets is unique to PLATO 2.0. The PLATO 2.0 catalogue allows us to e.g.: - complete our knowledge of planet diversity for low-mass objects, - correlate the planet mean density-orbital distance distribution with predictions from planet formation theories,- constrain the influence of planet migration and scattering on the architecture of multiple systems, and - specify how planet and system parameters change with host star characteristics, such as type, metallicity and age. The catalogue will allow us to study planets and planetary systems at different evolutionary phases. It will further provide a census for small, low-mass planets. This will serve to identify objects which retained their primordial hydrogen atmosphere and in general the typical characteristics of planets in such low-mass, low-density range. Planets detected by PLATO 2.0 will orbit bright stars and many of them will be targets for future atmosphere spectroscopy exploring their atmosphere. Furthermore, the mission has the potential to detect exomoons, planetary rings, binary and Trojan planets. The planetary science possible with PLATO 2.0 is complemented by its impact on stellar and galactic science via asteroseismology as well as light curves of all kinds of variable stars, together with observations of stellar clusters of different ages. This will allow us to improve stellar models and study stellar activity. A large number of well-known ages from red giant stars will probe the structure and evolution of our Galaxy. Asteroseismic ages of bright stars for different phases of stellar evolution allow calibrating stellar age-rotation relationships. Together with the results of ESA’s Gaia mission, the results of PLATO 2.0 will provide a huge legacy to planetary, stellar and galactic science. [less ▲]

We present our analyses of 15 months of Kepler data on KIC 10139564. We detected 57 periodicities with a variety of properties not previously observed all together in one pulsating subdwarf B (sdB) star ... [more ▼]

We present our analyses of 15 months of Kepler data on KIC 10139564. We detected 57 periodicities with a variety of properties not previously observed all together in one pulsating subdwarf B (sdB) star. Ten of the periodicities were found in the low-frequency region, and we associate them with nonradial g modes. The other periodicities were found in the high-frequency region, which are likely p modes. We discovered that most of the periodicities are components of multiplets with a common spacing. Assuming that multiplets are caused by rotation, we derive a rotation period of 25.6 ± 1.8 d. The multiplets also allow us to identify the pulsations to an unprecedented extent for this class of pulsator. We also detect l ≥ 2 multiplets, which are sensitive to the pulsation inclination and can constrain limb darkening via geometric cancellation factors. While most periodicities are stable, we detected several regions that show complex patterns. Detailed analyses showed that these regions are complicated by several factors. Two are combination frequencies that originate in the super-Nyquist region and were found to be reflected below the Nyquist frequency. The Fourier peaks are clear in the super-Nyquist region, but the orbital motion of Kepler smears the Nyquist frequency in the barycentric reference frame and this effect is passed on to the sub-Nyquist reflections. Others are likely multiplets but unstable in amplitudes and/or frequencies. The density of periodicities also makes KIC 10139564 challenging to explain using published models. This menagerie of properties should provide tight constraints on structural models, making this sdB star the most promising for applying asteroseismology. To support our photometric analysis, we have obtained spectroscopic radial-velocity measurements of KIC 10139564 using low-resolution spectra in the Balmer-line region. We did not find any radial-velocity variation. We used our high signal-to-noise average spectrum to improve the atmospheric parameters of the sdB star, deriving Teff = 31 859 K and log g = 5.673 dex. Based also on observations made with the Nordic Optical Telescope, operated on the island of La Palma jointly by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, in the Spanish Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias. [less ▲]

Mass-loss of red giant branch (RGB) stars is still poorly determined, despite its crucial role in the chemical enrichment of galaxies. Thanks to the recent detection of solar-like oscillations in G-K ... [more ▼]

Mass-loss of red giant branch (RGB) stars is still poorly determined, despite its crucial role in the chemical enrichment of galaxies. Thanks to the recent detection of solar-like oscillations in G-K giants in open clusters with Kepler, we can now directly determine stellar masses for a statistically significant sample of stars in the old open clusters NGC 6791 and 6819. The aim of this work is to constrain the integrated RGB mass-loss by comparing the average mass of stars in the red clump (RC) with that of stars in the low-luminosity portion of the RGB [i.e. stars with L≲L(RC)]. Stellar masses were determined by combining the available seismic parameters ν[SUB]max[/SUB] and Δν with additional photometric constraints and with independent distance estimates. We measured the masses of 40 stars on the RGB and 19 in the RC of the old metal-rich cluster NGC 6791. We find that the difference between the average mass of RGB and RC stars is small, but significant [? (random) ±0.04 (systematic) M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB]]. Interestingly, such a small ? does not support scenarios of an extreme mass-loss for this metal-rich cluster. If we describe the mass-loss rate with Reimers prescription, a first comparison with isochrones suggests that the observed ? is compatible with a mass-loss efficiency parameter in the range 0.1 ≲η≲ 0.3. Less stringent constraints on the RGB mass-loss rate are set by the analysis of the ˜2 Gyr old NGC 6819, largely due to the lower mass-loss expected for this cluster, and to the lack of an independent and accurate distance determination. In the near future, additional constraints from frequencies of individual pulsation modes and spectroscopic effective temperatures will allow further stringent tests of the Δν and ν[SUB]max[/SUB] scaling relations, which provide a novel, and potentially very accurate, means of determining stellar radii and masses. [less ▲]

We present the results of the asteroseismic analysis of the red-giant star KIC 4351319 (TYC 3124-914-1), observed for 30 d in short-cadence mode with the Kepler satellite. The analysis has allowed us to ... [more ▼]

We present the results of the asteroseismic analysis of the red-giant star KIC 4351319 (TYC 3124-914-1), observed for 30 d in short-cadence mode with the Kepler satellite. The analysis has allowed us to determine the large and small frequency separations, ?Hz and ?Hz, respectively, and the frequency of maximum oscillation power, ?Hz. The high signal-to-noise ratio of the observations allowed us to identify 25 independent pulsation modes whose frequencies range approximately from 300 to ?Hz. The observed oscillation frequencies together with the accurate determination of the atmospheric parameters (effective temperature, gravity and metallicity), provided by additional ground-based spectroscopic observations, enabled us to theoretically interpret the observed oscillation spectrum. KIC 4351319 appears to oscillate with a well-defined solar-type p-mode pattern due to radial acoustic modes and non-radial nearly pure p modes. In addition, several non-radial mixed modes have been identified. Theoretical models well reproduce the observed oscillation frequencies and indicate that this star, located at the base of the ascending red-giant branch, is in the hydrogen-shell-burning phase, with a mass of ˜1.3 M[SUB]&sun;[/SUB], a radius of ? and an age of ˜5.6 Gyr. The main parameters of this star have been determined with an unprecedented level of precision for a red-giant star, with uncertainties of 2 per cent for mass, 7 per cent for age, 1 per cent for radius and 4 per cent for luminosity. [less ▲]

Stellar interiors are inaccessible through direct observations. For this reason, helioseismologists made use of the Sun’s acoustic oscillation modes to tune models of its structure. The quest to detect ... [more ▼]

Stellar interiors are inaccessible through direct observations. For this reason, helioseismologists made use of the Sun’s acoustic oscillation modes to tune models of its structure. The quest to detect modes that probe the solar core has been ongoing for decades. We report the detection of mixed modes penetrating all the way to the core of an evolved star from 320 days of observations with the Kepler satellite. The period spacings of these mixed modes are directly dependent on the density gradient between the core region and the convective envelope. [less ▲]

We report on the ground-based follow-up program of spectroscopic and photometric observations of solar-like asteroseismic targets for the Kepler space mission. These stars constitute a large group of more ... [more ▼]

We report on the ground-based follow-up program of spectroscopic and photometric observations of solar-like asteroseismic targets for the Kepler space mission. These stars constitute a large group of more than a thousand objects which are the subject of an intensive study by the Kepler Asteroseismic Science Consortium Working Group 1 (KASC WG-1). In the current work we will discuss the methods we use to determine the fundamental stellar atmospheric parameters using high-quality stellar spectra. These provide essential constraints for the asteroseismic modelling and make it possible to verify the parameters in the Kepler Input Catalogue (KIC). [less ▲]

We have measured solar-like oscillations in red giants using time-series photometry from the first 34 days of science operations of the Kepler Mission. The light curves, obtained with 30 minute sampling ... [more ▼]

We present preliminary asteroseismic results from Kepler on three G-type stars. The observations, made at one-minute cadence during the first 33.5 days of science operations, reveal high signal-to-noise ... [more ▼]

We present preliminary asteroseismic results from Kepler on three G-type stars. The observations, made at one-minute cadence during the first 33.5 days of science operations, reveal high signal-to-noise solar-like oscillation spectra in all three stars: about 20 modes of oscillation may be clearly distinguished in each star. We discuss the appearance of the oscillation spectra, use the frequencies and frequency separations to provide first results on the radii, masses, and ages of the stars, and comment in the light of these results on prospects for inference on other solar-type stars that Kepler will observe. [less ▲]

We report on the first asteroseismic analysis of solar-type stars observed by Kepler. Observations of three G-type stars, made at one-minute cadence during the first 33.5 days of science operations ... [more ▼]

We report on the first asteroseismic analysis of solar-type stars observed by Kepler. Observations of three G-type stars, made at one-minute cadence during the first 33.5 days of science operations, reveal high signal-to-noise solar-like oscillation spectra in all three stars: About 20 modes of oscillation can clearly be distinguished in each star. We discuss the appearance of the oscillation spectra, including the presence of a possible signature of faculae, and the presence of mixed modes in one of the three stars. [less ▲]

This article summaries a talk given at the HELAS IV international meeting We present a brief overview of the history of attempts to obtain a clear detection of solar-like oscillations in cluster stars ... [more ▼]

This article summaries a talk given at the HELAS IV international meeting We present a brief overview of the history of attempts to obtain a clear detection of solar-like oscillations in cluster stars, and discuss the results on the first clear detection, which was made by the Kepler Asteroseismic Science Consortium (KASC) Working Group 2. Data from Kepler. [less ▲]